1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of personal alarm signaling systems in general, and in particular to a system that allows rescuers to retrace the path of a disabled firefighter.
2. Description of Related Art
As can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,541,579; 5,621,388; 5,644,294; 5,990,793; and 5,689,234, the prior art is replete with myriad and diverse firefighter locator systems.
While all of the aforementioned prior art constructions are more than adequate for the basic purpose and function for which they have been specifically designed, they are uniformly deficient with respect to their failure to provide a simple, efficient, and practical device that will provide rescue personnel with not only the present location of a disabled firefighter, but also the exact route taken by that firefighter from the time that they entered a burning building up until the present time.
While many of the current systems transmit data as to the present location of a disabled firefighter, it is of little or no value to the rescuers if they do not know which floor the disabled firefighter is on, or exactly how the disabled firefighter arrived at their present location.
A tragically classical example of this problem recently played out in New England. Several firefighters became disabled in a multi story warehouse that had a labyrinth arrangement of interior walls and partitions that totally frustrated all rescue attempts. Furthermore, when the tragedy was reenacted, it became apparent that the rescuers had come within 25 feet of one or more of the fallen firefighters, but could not reach them due to the presence of one or more structural walls between the rescuers and the firefighters.
As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a longstanding need among firefighters for a new and improved personal emergency locator system that will allow rescuers to exactly retrace any individual firefighters path of travel into a burning structure so that the rescuers can go directly to the location of the disabled firefighter, and the provision of such a system is a stated objective of the present invention.